I did alot of soul searching before naming this blog. I feel fortunate to see beautiful things every day. You could say I view the world through rose colored glasses or that I view the glass as always being half full. Whatever the reason Im happy to share with you my view of...a beautiful life

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Robin's House

My friend Robin is about 4'9" of energy and fun. I stopped by her house yesterday for a Happy Hour beverage and a visit and thought I would show you some of the work we have done in her house. One of my favorite things about Robin is that her comfort zone for color and style is very broad which means we have alot of fun when we are redoing something in her house. Robin loves her family, friends, little dogs and making a comfortable environment to nest and entertain. I hope you enjoy the tour.

Family Room Many people say you should limit the amount of family pictures you use in your home...I think just the opposite. The vignette above the Carol Bolton sofa is a mix of pictures of siblings, parents, grandparents and great-grandparents. The pictures create a family history and a beautiful way to fill up a large wall. (Robins husband Gary is a Saint for rehanging it every time she paints).

Family Room windows

A great thing about Robins house is that all of the rooms have huge windows. The windows are beautiful but also create a design challenge. We wanted to warm the space with fabric but also design an interesting treatment. This one is based on an old stagecoach valance. The aqua woven toile adds a great punch of color. Robin found that great little french chair at an antique shop already upholstered in that fabric and it worked beautifully!

Family Room other window

The other side of the family room...with a couple Carol Bolton chairs.

The little ottoman

Robin and I had a great time designing this little ottoman. She bought the legs at a home improvement store and painted them herself and Eddie from Dover Interiors made it for us....very Mackenzie-Childs at half the price.

Living Room

We decided to go monochromatic in Robins living room. I love the way the window treatments turned out...the hardware makes all the difference in the world. You cant tell from the picture but when you are in the room you feel a really great warmth, its just a really pleasant place to have a visit. MaryAnne Caminiti did a nice mottled faux on the walls for softness. Check out those lamps Robin found at another antique store.

Living Room window hardware

With such a huge window we felt like we needed to add something to the pole that spans the whole wall. We found these cuffs {almost like bracelets} that add a nice subtle elegance.

Pillows

Since our color was very monochromatic we decided to use alot of texture in pillows and trim. The pillow on the left is the silk from the window treatment that we overlayed with a sheer that had the geometric pattern already applied to it. The pillow on the left is a ready made that Robin found...it matched perfectly.

The chair

This chair that Dover Interiors just reupholstered for us fits Robin and her personality to a T. Vibrant, fun and beautiful. Robin found the green leaf fabric at another fabric store and we got to work finding fabrics to coordinate with it. The result really is a work of art...every room needs a statement piece. (Excuse the lamp on the floor...the room is being painted but I couldnt wait to share this pic with you).

close up of The Chair

This is a close up, its hard to tell from the picture but the front rail (the red fabric) is ruched to give it a little dimension. The cording is actually a cut velvet stripe that we cut on the straight instead of the bias...I love the result!

Bench

This is a bench that could have been very ordinary... but this great trim took care of that. We loved the black and gold fabric but it wasnt quite enough for Robin so we found this extremely formal tassel trim and had it applied to the top of the bench...love it!

About Me

I am a decorator with Williams and Sherrill, a full service design studio in Richmond, Virginia. It took a few career changes for me to realize that decorating was my passion. Beautiful things, beautiful food, beautiful interiors, beautiful traditions combine to create a beautiful life.